09/03/2026
Last week was a historic moment for District 1.
Nearly 50 years after the community first pushed for City recognition, Austin City Council has officially approved historic landmark zoning for Bethany Cemetery in East Austin.
This designation matters deeply as Bethany Cemetery, founded in 1893, is Austin’s first Black cemetery and it holds the stories of generations of Black Austinites: veterans. Ministers, educators, entrepreneurs, and families whose lives may not be documented anywhere else.
For decades, it has been the community itself who kept these grounds cared for, often as caretakers who have since moved away or passed on.
Landmark status means this history is now formally protected from being erased by the pace of change happening across East Austin.
As Bethany Cemetery Association President Sue Spears has said, “Every stone out here tells a story – and for some, that stone is the only record that ever existed.”
This is Austin history. This is East Austin history. This is District 1 history. After nearly five decades, it is finally protected.
